Washington, DC

1. Brink of war
2. Wunderkind worries
3. Housing bill slides to law
4. Chip maker makes history
5. Iran ripples to Africa

Shares of home builders Lennar and Toll Bros. ▲ 1% on the expectation Trump won’t veto the housing bill.

US and Iran back on edge of war

The US and Iran have returned to the brink of war, as mediators in the region scramble to pull the countries back. This week, the US escalated attacks on Iran to levels that rival the early days of the conflict, striking 170 targets over two days, according to US Central Command. The renewed fighting is driven by disagreements over what role Iran should play in controlling the Strait of Hormuz. The US maintains Iran should have almost none, while Iranian officials point to language in the memorandum of understanding both countries signed a few weeks ago to argue they were granted expansive authority. Whether the framework of the deal even holds is an open question, as Trump said today on social media that the US and Iran have agreed to talks, but the “Cease Fire is OVER!”

Progressive consultants blamed for Platner disaster

Wunderkind consultants known for getting their populist clients into headlines are trying to stay out of them as the fallout continues from the implosion of Graham Platner’s campaign, which the Maine Democrat formally ended today. The Intercept reports that members of the Democratic Socialists of America circulated a letter calling on candidates to drop Fight, a progressive firm credited with supercharging the campaigns of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Senate hopeful Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan. The letter calls a firm founder, Morris Katz, 27, one of the “chief parties responsible for the catastrophic campaign.” Meanwhile, Democrats are turning on Daniel Moraff, 34, an independent consultant whom The Wall Street Journal referred to as the “mad scientist” behind the Platner campaign.

Housing bill headed to law without Trump’s signature

President Trump will not sign the bipartisan housing bill today, but he is not expected to veto it either, setting the stage for it to become law at midnight. The US president described the decision today as a “PROTEST” over the fact that Congress has not passed his voter ID bill. It’s the result that most Trump allies expected, even after the president cancelled the initial signing — but it still leaves the future of his “SAVE America Act” in question. It also does nothing to lower tensions within his own party. Lawmakers were denied a signing ceremony that could have served as a positive photo op as they pitch voters who are increasingly concerned about rising costs.

— Shelby Talcott

SK Hynix debut shows AI’s continued market dominance

SK Hynix’s entrance into the US market showed investor appetite for AI-related trade remains unsatiated, despite chip stock jitters in recent weeks. The South Korean memory chip maker made history in raising $26.5 billion today, the largest foreign listing ever in the US. The stock jumped 14% when the Nasdaq opened this morning. The Seoul-based firm is one of the biggest winners in AI buildout and it plans to use the new investment to expand its production of high-bandwidth memory chips used by companies including Nvidia, which designs AI processors, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, which produces Nvidia’s chips. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said yesterday he’s in talks with the company about directing some of that investment into production in the US. SK Hynix hasn’t said publicly, yet, whether it plans to do so.

Renewed fighting in Iran should worry African leaders

Just as African capitals were working out the cost of the US-Iran war, the prospect of renewed fighting has returned. That should worry policymakers across the continent. The IMF’s latest World Economic Outlook says the biggest casualties from another disruption to the Strait of Hormuz will likely be smaller, oil-importing economies in sub-Saharan Africa. East Africa has had a preview of how bad this can get. Kenya, Tanzania, and their neighbors have seen pump prices spike since April as the conflict disrupted shipping and raised insurance costs. It illustrates why the enthusiasm around Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote’s proposed $17 billion refinery in Kenya’s coastal town of Lamu is about more than another industrial megaproject. For years, African leaders have argued that value addition should apply to minerals, not just raw ore. The Hormuz crisis suggests the same principle applies to energy.

Katie Nolan is questioning where sports media is headed. On this week’s Mixed Signals, the sports media host and “Casuals” podcast creator sits down to talk about navigating two decades of upheaval in the industry. Max and Ben ask Katie why she turned down gambling advertising when it was everywhere, how politics keeps inserting itself into sports, and whether the window that opened for women in the space is closing again. They also get into call-in radio, hockey’s underrated chaos, and what it took for her to become a Jeopardy! champion.

White House

• President Trump said he’s “left instructions” in the event of his assassination by Iran. — NYPost
• The new Air Force One, a retrofitted Boeing 747 gifted by Qatar, lacks some of the defensive countermeasures of the jet used before. — NYT
• The Trump administration plans to install permanent fencing at the ends of Pennsylvania Avenue outside the White House as part of an effort to boost security. — WaPo

Congress

• Sens. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., and Roger Wicker, R-Miss., announced they’d reached an agreement with the White House to move forward a sanctions bill designed “to exact a heavy price on those who buy Russian oil and natural gas, fueling the Putin war machine.”
• House Republicans are planning to hold a vote on a bill to make Daylight Savings Time permanent in hopes of quelling a revolt by Florida representatives. — Politico

Campaigns

• The Maine Democratic Party announced that its process for new Senate candidates to enter the race is now live.

National Security

• Internal concerns about politics undermining the objectivity of the CIA’s analysis have reportedly increased since President Trump returned to office, according to a recent annual survey of agents. — The Atlantic

Courts

• Sullivan & Cromwell’s representation of President Trump in his appeal of the E. Jean Carroll verdict has deepened internal rifts among the firm’s partners. — WSJ

Environment

• The Trump administration sharply cut habitat protections for wildlife under the Endangered Species Act.
• Matthew M. Wielicki, a critic of climate science, was appointed to oversee the federal government’s flagship report on how climate change affects the United States.

World

• Boko Haram militants received tips from an AI chatbot on infiltrating a Nigerian military base.

— President Trump, when asked by the New York Post about the possibility of his assassination by Iran.

Semafor DC Team

Laura McGann, editor

With help from Elana Schor, senior Washington editor, and Morgan Chalfant, Washington briefing editor

Brendan Ruberry, copy editor

Contact our reporters:

Burgess Everett, Eleanor Mueller, Shelby Talcott, Nicholas Wu, David Weigel